SAFIA boast influences many would find surprising for an electronic act.
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Among the likes of rock legends Guns N' Roses, there's a love of classic unashamed pop music.
"Pop music has a time and place, there's good pop music and bad pop music, and it's incredibly good songwriting a lot of the time," Safia singer Ben Woolner-Kirkham says in a Canberra cafe.
"When pop music is at it's best, it's incredible - if you look back at some of the Britney Spears songs, you take those apart and they are incredibly written songs, super interesting, it's complex but still super accessible and hooky."
Drummer Michael Bell chimes in: "My favourite is Oops!...I Did It Again. The chord progression is like an old sailor song, this shanty song. They've slowed it down and the melody is just awesome."
Woolner-Kirkham agrees.
"The harmonic minors that run through that - you don't get that level of complexity with new, big pop stuff - there's a level of mastery with songwriting that comes from that element that can make complexity accessible again, writing so well that you can bring all these sounds together and make it understandable for someone who might not really know music."
It's a fascinating - and quite enlightening - take on a Spears classic, and sums up this Canberra trio that have captured the hearts and minds of the Australian music industry in the space of seven years. They aren't "too cool" to try something new or, for example, admit their absolute love of Canberra.
Safia is ACT born and bred. The band's third member Harry Sayers met Bell while playing soccer, and together with Woolner-Kirkham, they attended Radford College. It was here that they bonded over their love of guitar and rock'n'roll, and "it grew from there and took on many different forms."
The trio began playing covers at bars around Canberra, but things really took off after uploading their song Listen to Soul, Listen to Blues to Triple J Unearthed.
It helped them win a performing slot at the Canberra leg of Groovin' The Moo, and introduced a nation to their unique sound.
"We didn't really think much of it and we were really just doing it for fun, and trying something new with electronic music," Woolner-Kirkham recalls.
"I didn't give it a passing thought, and then I remember my cousin called me at like 8.30 in the morning one day, and said, 'Dude, they are playing your song on the radio'."
It was a great motivating moment for Safia.
"It was a bit like, 'Well, we must be on to something here, so let's make another song'," Woolner-Kirkham says.
"We made a few more songs and started getting some more constructive feedback on everything, playing some little shows around town at La Di Da and Transit Bar and we had a few support gigs around Canberra."
But gone are the days of playing small venues. The band kicks off a new tour of Australia and New Zealand on Saturday at the University of Canberra.
They released their second album, Story's Start or End, on August 9. It followed their debut, Internal, which reached No.2 on the ARIA charts in 2016. In between, they've enjoyed air time on Triple J with Embracing Me, Make Them Wheels Roll and Cellophane Rainbow.
Resolution, their first single off the new album, introduces fans to a more refined, mature sound.
Canberra is close to their hearts, and remains home. They returned for a one-off show with fellow Canberrans Peking Duk in May, and like to keep tabs on fellow ACT musicians.
"Artists like Moaning Lisa, Genesis Owusu, Hands Like Houses, Sputnik Sweetheart - friends we've grown up with along the way," Woolner-Kirkham says.
"I think Canberra has always had some of the most interesting music in a bizarre way, because of that lack of outside influence, and I think that's coming across in all types of music."
And Safia have also collaborated with another burgeoning Canberra product, BentSpoke Brewery, to create a new beer, Resonate. After being approached by owner and head brewer Richard Watkins, it was an offer the band couldn't pass up.
"Then we met them and we just clicked, we get on really well with them, especially Rich," Woolner-Kirkham continues. "The way he approaches beer is like a fine art, he's so passionate about it and that's infectious, and then it seemed quite natural."
Canberra was integral to creating their new album. They wrote, recorded and produced Story's Start and End in studios around Canberra and Queanbeyan.
"You want to find something that's going to make the experience unique, so for us, we write our best music when we're relaxed and in a headspace where it's fun with zero expectation, so it kind of just made sense when you're in this environment, where the best ideas come from, Woolner-Kirkham says.
"There's a sense of individuality and lack of pretense in Canberra because it is so far removed from big industry. I think creatives are able to develop here without that expectation or outside influence coming in early."
Bell says they haven't stopped writing since Internal was released and they had a huge catalogue to choose from for the new record. It allowed them to be more selective when putting the record together.
"There's a maturity in the writing, I think we're showcasing our ability a lot more," Woolner-Kirkham says.
"That will be more apparent with the live show too - we're more confident, and we took our time and we had a very clear mind from start to finish."